OTE on the FMR: The smoking ban at Crossgates Mall

On today’s Fly Morning Rush, Brian, Chrissy and I talked about the smoking ban at Crossgates Mall — and why I, a non-smoker who finds the habit disgusting — thinks this approach is unnecessary, and extreme.

48 Responses

Unfortunately I can’t listen while I’m at work but I wanted to weigh in on the subject. I’m also a non-smoker and really dislike walking through a cloud of smoke to get inside a business. That said, I don’t think it’s necessary to disallow all smoking. How about having 1 or 2 smoking areas? Make most of the entrances smoke free but let smokers have at least 1 covered area to smoke outdoors. Then non-smokers that are very sensitive to smoke can use other entrances.

I am with you Kristi… I think smoking is disgusting and walking through the cloud into the mall makes me want to vomit on people… but so does taking away our rights one by one. There should be a designated smoking section… ESPECIALLY for the mall employees. I get that a lot of office buildings are smoke free, but it’s a lot easier for someone to walk across the street for a cigarette than an “across the street” at Crossgates.

That being said… what’s the next target? Drinking? Designated drinking sections in restaurants? “Your glass of wine is upsetting my young child, please do it over there.”

Nanny state. That’s what it’s all coming down to. Althought this isn’t the government enforcing the rule – it is similar to what is happening all over the country and this is just a small example of control.

Definition (for those wy don’t know) – Nanny state is a term of British origin (and primary use) that conveys a view that a government or its policies are overprotective or interfering unduly with personal choice.

Because people cannot manage to smoke only in the already designated “no smoking” areas.
I am so over the whining about “losing our rights”.
Would somebody PLEASE make a list of all these other “rights” we have lost?

Seriously…how are they going to enforce this? Personally, I can’t stand Crossgates anyway, and the people will go somewhere else where they can smoke…like Colonie Center. Just my .02, and I don’t smoke!

I sense a storm brewing. Can I be the first to say…but the children! Think of the children! I don’t want them to “catch” asthma by walking through a 2 second puff of smoke. You know someone is going to say it.

Today is my 11 week anniversary of being a non-smoker. I couldn’t be happier. With that said, I never had any issues of walking through a cloud of smoke going into or out of that mall. Maybe one or two people off to the side but that’s it. And I am more sensitive to the smell now more than ever. I also find the ban extreme and wonder why they include electronic cigarettes, which contain no tobacco products. Many people have had success using these to quit and it sounds like they are using this ban to encourage people to quit as well. Do they still have an e-cig kiosk inside where people use them? Kinda odd to me. I always liked Colonie Center better anyway.

I said it on another post on FB somewhere…but it really doesn’t matter what we think…and it’s not about politics—The Mall is private property—much like your house–and they don’t want cigs, the butts or the smoke on that property.

So call them, complain, don’t go there, whatever you’d like…but in the end it’s their “House” and they don’t have to let you smoke there…just like they don’t HAVE to let your teens hangout there without an adult on the weekends—even if they don’t kick out each and every one lol

What rights? Tell me, what do I have the right to do *on your own property*. This isn’t the government taking rights away; it’s a private company making a decision of what to allow on property it owns. Why is it that every time someone is told they can’t do something, they have to immediately start whining about a “nanny state” like petulant children?

This “ban” seems extreme and I work in a hospital. Of all places, a hospital attempts to be health wise and encourages their employees to quit smoking if they do indeed do it. But even the hospital has a smoking hut in the parking lot designated for such an issue.

So wait let’s say if you have a newborn or baby it is okay that you have to walk through the cloud of smoke with them if you, yourself are a non smoker but yet your child is exposed to this without choice because the “rules” or policies are not enforced. This is I agree with this policy.

I would imagine that this has more to do with the mess that smokers leave behind. Piles of cigarette butts, empty cartons, dead lighters. What business owner wants all that garbage in their parking lots and on their sidewalks? It’s disgusting.

I don’t know if covered smoking areas are within fire code. I used to work at the Saratoga Race Track and we used to have to tell people smoking under the canopy that it was against fire code and to smoke out in the “open air.” I don’t smoke; I think it’s a gross disgusting habit, but even places like Disney World have a few designated smoking areas. I don’t get how they are possibly going to enforce the no smokeless tobacco, either.

Absolutely support this decision; kudos to Crossgates for taking this positive stand.

Hopefully it will clarify the policy for the inconsiderate jerks who have ignored the current policy and make it necessary to run the gauntlet to get in or out of the Mall. Others have stated clearly enough the private property issues. Maybe some will go where there is no smoke protection, but many of us will prefer to go where such rules are enforced.

At first, I thought “Oh this is great- I don’t smoke, so I don’t care; it doesn’t matter if they ban it or not”. But my dad brought up an interesting point on the way to ‘Tethered 24/7’ last night. He thinks this is a bad idea because it is taking away the freedoms of people. Smoking outside (or in general- unless we’re talking pot, etc.) isn’t illegal. He doesn’t smoke, but he does understand what smokers are going through with their frustration. After hearing his opinion, I agree with him. I think this smoking ban is both good and bad. It’s good not to breathe that nicotine, ammonia, and other stuff in, but it’s also taking others freedoms away. People should do what they want to do- and if it’s hazardous like smoking, so be it.

JayK – Look around. When people want to take your control away – they start small. The smoking ban is just one small way. Then it grows bigger and bigger. Before you know it – you can’t smoke outside your own house.
I do not smoke. But – telling people they can’t smoke outside seems controlling nad ridiuclous.
And we should all be worried about how our rights are slowly being taken away. One scary example – Did you know that in NYC you can’t feed the homeless unless it’s approved by the state??? Really? So groups who are trying to do good can’t feed hungry people because it might not be approved food?
Wake up and smell the roses. Our country that was based on freedom is slowly slipping away. The smoking ban is just one tiny example. We should all be aware and worried.

This is extreeeeeme. I dont smoke either- but come on! I like the previous idea someone had about designating one or two areas for smokers. It seems that this will affect the employees at the mall the most- rather than the shoppers.

To all of you whining smokers out there. Too bad. A huge contributing factor to the perception of Crossgates being a dump can be found at the entrance. The stench and litter you leave behind? And your “rights” as a smoker? It is private property. Yes, for public use, but the owners are well within their “rights” to tell you to take your habit elsewhere. Don’t want to shop there? Don’t care.
Now that I have finished my soapbox rant. I think a solution would be to have a designated area, away from the entrances. But you have to utilize it.

Still looking for someone to post that long list of freedoms we have lost in this country………
There has always been a designated smoking area outside the mall. 50 feet from the entrance. No one paid attention to that, so now it has to be banned. Just like children, if you cannot follow a simple set of guidelines you have to face the consequences.
SMOKING IN PUBLIC IS NOT A RIGHT. FREEDOM FROM SMOKING IS.

Bridget, so Pyramid is going to now take away your right to smoke outside your house?

I agree on the NYC thing; it’s ridiculous, just being discovered, likely to fail and totally irrelevant to this conversation. Is that a private corporation deciding what to do on their own property? No. That’s a government entity declaring a law. This is a private entity managing their own affairs, something that they have the right to do.

On the other hand, you don’t have the right to anything on someone else’s property that they don’t like. Accepting things like that is called growing up.

The rule is based on stupid logic. There is already an existing rule preventing smoking from 25 feet from the entrance. It’s silly in the extreme to make a rule because people don’t follow the existing rule.

I used to smoke, but that was over 20 years ago. You’d think I’d support all the non-smoking rules and regulations wouldn’t you? But as can be counted on I do not!

Those who enjoy slowly removing our rights and freedoms one by one have and are using the Smoking issue as a test bed on how to manipulate the Population. Hitler did the same thing with the Jews turning an entire nation against them. The same tactics are being used by these same people in Government and other so called healthcare agencies..

The Current Politicans who are trying desperating to Pit the Poor against the Rich are currently doing the exact same thing and I have no doubts they learned how from the information developed with the Smoking bans…Notice they do not Pit the lazy and useles non-producers against the hard working taxpayers, not they make it the Poor against the Rich, irregardless if it is the ruling elite Rich who are creating the divide for poltical reasons..

So though I applaud the non-smoking issues, as only for a health reason the “shunning” of Smokers is an entirely different subject…and your all falling for it…as the Germans did…

I am also a non-smoker, who hates walking through a cloud of smoke. While I feel to an extent, that it is not the employers responsability to make sure their employee can smoke. I also feel bad for the employees, who will have to go their entire shift without smoking. Kristi, I believe it was you who said that an area should be designated for smokers only, and I agree. There should be an area, where families will not walk through that mall employees can access to take their smoke breaks.

@BL – exactly. The mall authorities were too busy to enforce the rules already by telling people they needed to go to the smoking areas that are already set up just 50 feet from the entrances (as said by #26, since I have not visited in a few years), so lets just go farther and ban it all around. The only way it will work is if it is enforced, and since we see the track record of how they enforced the current ban, I see it not working. I personally do not smoke and don’t really like the smell of secondhand smoke, but what will Pyramid think of next? All the restaurants can’t sell any form of alcohol, since someone could get hurt from someone driving home after having a drink? A cover charge to keep the “miscreants” out of the mall? What good business decision is it to alienate a group of customers when the market is not back to well yet?

#14 – you can’t protect your children from all the elements of life that you may want to. Why is everything about children’s rights anyway? Not to sound insensitive but if you are a non-smoker and the child lives primarily in a non-smoking environment, suck it up and just rush through the smoke cloud outside.

If we truly wanted to protect our children from everything possible and not expose them to anything, the only way to truly do that is to not have children!!

If the smoke doesn’t cling to me as I walk through it, then it doesn’t really matter. My spouse and I got chased off a wall at a local mall because we sat five minutes to catch our breath. Second-hand smoke is dangerous. We have had two deaths our extended family because of it.

JayK – you are missing the point entirely.
Yes, it’s a private corporation. But this is how control starts. It starts on the private level and then it sneaks out to the state level and then the national level. And before you know it, you are being yelled at for sending your kids to school with a turkey sandwich because it’s not “healthy” enough. Oh, wait. That already happened.

Get my point now? This is how control starts. And I see their side. Really, I do. I get it. It’s their private property. But – how can you dictate control over an OUTSIDE area that is thousands of square feet? It is so dumb – I can’t even talk about it anymore.

@#37 Yeah, I totally agree about private property. But that wasn’t my point. I was responding to the person who asks what rights have we lost. An off-topic post to be sure, but any chance I can educate someone on the evils of government I take it.

So yeah Crossgates is private property and they can make any rules they want, unless it violates civil rights acts. Not sure how ethical or logical it is that you’re allowed to discriminate on some factors like appearance, age and smoking habits, but not on other things like race, gender, etc. Not that I’m pro-discrimination (far from it) just that I don’t understand the double standard. Do we have private property or don’t we?

As for this issue, I think it’s just Pyramid trying to be politically correct. They’re turning a non-issue into an issue. I go to Crossgates all the time and I don’t see that many smokers there – none in such mass groups that there’s a fog of cigarette smoke at every entrance as the pro-ban people claim. Just build some smoking gazebos or pavilions away from the entrances and smokers will flock there.

I’m also wondering how they’re going to enforce this. Security guards aren’t police. Are they going to handcuff and detain people for smoking? Are you obligated by law to obey their “orders” if they tell you to put it out or get off the property?

Bridget, I get it. You’re paranoid, like the others here. That’s fine, but own it, and allow a company to do what they will on private property.

Chad, they’ll probably enforce it by the last option you selected. And I cough through clouds of smoke walking in every time I go to the mall, so we may be using different entrances. Mostly, they are probably doing so in response to complaints from other shoppers.

And remember, it’s company-wide, it doesn’t have to be a problem that came from Crossgates itself. The huge crowds of smokers causing complaints could’ve been at Carousel, but the company decided to do so on all its properties. I haven’t weighed in on my own opinion, but I think it’s a great idea and wish more companies would do so.

I’m a bit late to comment – but while I’m a non smoker and feel this is a bit extreme…I believe it is the smoker’s fault. There are always people smoking right outside the doors, forcing those to walk through smoke clouds. There are always cigarette butts on the ground by the doors. There are always mall employees smoking in the back hallways …thus triggering the fire alarms and making the back-room of other stores smell. I wish Crossgates had established a few smoke areas away from the main doors as an alternative and enforced the existing rules (such as no smoking inside, no smoking close to the doors).

I’ll say it again here. I agree it’s private property. I agree that that trumps everything else in this discussion. I just hope that we are all consistent and were equally supportive of Pyramid when those folks went on O’Reilly a few years ago when Crossgates threw them out because they wore inflammatory political tee shirts. Or the next time they get the gumption to get the Occupy-whatevers or whichever other group with a beef and free time wants to create a disturbance in the mall. That it’s your own property should win out every time.

I am a smoker and I am sick of hearing that “many” of us are inconsiderate. I do not smoke in front of any doorway. I do not smoke in my house or cars. How about some people get some common sense which is clearly lacking.
With that said, I am sick of the people who douse themselves with perfume and get into an elevator with me. That makes me want to vomit but I don’t see anyone banning that. I don’t like driving behind CDTA buses, it makes me sick. Should we do a study about the effects of bus fumes? I am allergic to dogs and cats, maybe we should get rid of the mall pet stores, I may sneeze or have an allergic reaction. Obesity causes may health issue, I think we need to remove food courts, we don’t want anyone having a hamburger and a heart attack.
Also, what about adult rights. Why do some think it is okay to allow their small child to have a temper tantrum in a store for there entire trip and they do not remove the child from the situation? I really don’t care to listen to it, I would have taken my child from the store and gone home. Do we need adult only store, restaurants and how about no children allowed on some flights because your kid has a running nose and I don’t want to be on a 4 hour flight with them? I “may” get sick.
People really need to get a grip. I will NOT shop be shopping again at Crossgate”s Mall. They have the right to say I can’t smoke, so I will shop online so I don’t have to listen to your kids temper tantrum, smell your crappy perfume.

I also am not a smoker, but I believe Pyramid has turned Crossgates into The Nazi Mall, and they are shooting themselves in the foot, business-wise. Now, in addition to banning teenagers on weekends who are unaccompanied by adults, they have prematurely cut off the lease for the electronic cigarette store and are kicking them out! A lot of other retailers are complaining that since smoking on mall property is strictly verbotten, workers are quitting and can’t be replaced, because no one wants to work there. Pyramid’s paranoia really is ridiculous. You inhale more noxious fumes from automobiles in traffic than you do by walking by a few store personnel puffing on their cigarettes. No wonder it’s as dead as a doornail there. I am boycotting this mall for its nutty, Nazi rules. They can have it, I’ll take my business to Colonie Center. And others who who wish to express why they no longer shop there should complain to Pyramid Properties CEO, Stephen J. Congel. Address can be found under “Contact” on the website http://www.pyramidmg.com.